Appeals process in New York state courts & proving miscarriage of justice

[draegonhawke]

I've got a story set in present-day New York, in an alternate universe in which, instead of a massive prison system, the main mode of punishment in for most crimes in the US is to have your labor leased for a period of time to private, corporate, or governmental entities in what amounts to a modern-day, punitive slavery. (Significant because there

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[bauble]

Disclaimer: Criminal law and in particular, appellate (appeals-related) criminal law isn't my area of expertise, so this is just based off of what I learned in school. Anyone with more experience is free to jump in and correct anything I say, but I figure some information/insight for you is more helpful than none.

1) Would she have to be involved in the process of filing an appeal - would her signature need to appear on a form, etc? Or would a third party be able to hire a lawyer to file an appeal on her behalf, without her input?

Typically, yes. As far as I know, the only situations in which a third party could take action on her behalf in a case/appeal is if she was incapacitated in some way. That is, declared mentally incompetent (ex: develops some form of Alzheimer's Disease that renders her unable to make her own decisions) or is physically incapacitated (ex: hits her head and goes into a coma). In any incapacity circumstance, a guardian of some sort has to be appointed by the court (a judge) to make decisions on her behalf while she is unable to. So the guardian could file an appeal on her behalf. A guardian can be a relative or are sometimes lawyers who are on a list the court (judge) has.

2) a) Once there's suspicion that the public defender took a bribe/evidence was planted, who would look into it? Would the investigation be handed off to the NYPD, or stay with the FBI?

I don't know enough about police or FBI jurisdiction, but given the strength that federal agencies like the FBI and NSA have nowadays because of 'Homeland Security' priorities, I wouldn't be surprised if FBI could take over the case and never give it back to the NYPD easily. It would be especially easy with the fact that some important FBI information is at stake, which they probably don't want spilling out into the public/NYPD.

b) If the investigation revealed that the defender was paid off, what would happen? Would the trial have to be re-done?

The public defender would face disciplinary action from the Disciplinary Committee of the Bar of New York (a professional committee made up of other lawyers in NY who enforce disciplinary actions against lawyers in NY for professional misconduct). This action could include suspension of her license, public censure, and even disbarment (meaning she could no longer practice law in New York). I assume there are criminal laws surrounding bribery applicable in this situation, so she could be in for criminal prosecution. Her client could also sue her for malpractice.

The short answer to the second question is: probably yes.

c) If the investigation revealed that evidence was planted, what would happen? Would the trial have to be re-done?

Probably yes.

[draegonhawke]

Awesome! Thank you. This is much more information than I was able to find/sift out on my own.